The Icelandic Book Flood

[Litopian]

The latest Litopia After Dark episode has just been released:

The Icelandic Book Flood

Please feel free to discuss the show below.

 

[Octopus Messiah]

Been out of the loop recently, please excuse my absence! (gagworthy hashtag: #amwriting)

This show is practically tailor-made for the colony: a publishing industry expert, a book promoter and a new author walk into a bar, um, managed by a literary agent...

We talked trends, how to get your book noticed, shoes-- a fabulous insight into books books books and it's not all doom and gloom!

Okay, as you were...

 

[Katie-Ellen]

I don't know how encouraged I feel, but I wasn't plunged into gloom, either. I really enjoyed that. Colouring books for your birthday, Ian? All in a good cause, in the name of subsidising LITTYRATURE?

#carryonwriting

 

[KG Christopher]

Colouring books and Where's Wally, thats quite sad.

 

[Octopus Messiah]

I was at a dinner party which had reached a slow point and the hostess broke out a (fairly intricate) coloring book. It was something to do with your hands while you talked and even though I didn't partake, the experience struck me as kind of sweet. Not really a book though, is it? Then again, if it's supporting other titles...

 

[Robinne Weiss]

And here, we should all be selling the doodles we make at the top of the page when we can't think what to write! Why didn't I think of that!

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Better than picking one's nose, I suppose, or scratching one's.......if one has a problem with restless hands.

Con-ver-say-shun

I probably would enjoy playing with a nice, intricate colouring book....if needing to veg (and not arguing that vegging is valuable and necessary)

But not during a dinner con-ver- say-shun

 

[Robinne Weiss]

We were given a few of those colouring books for Christmas this year, and they now come out every evening at story time--whoever isn't reading colours while they listen. Dumb, but I always need my hands busy during story time or I get restless, and the kids seem to appreciate it, too.

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Someone bought their granddaughter one just very recently; now, where did I hear that?

And was horrified when her grand daughter (aged 3 or 4) came to show her the colouring in.

It was full of words and you coloured the words, and just for example, one of them was THUNDERC*NT.

 

[KG Christopher]

@Octopus Messiah was taken to task by Leila Segal, imagine 50% of the Icelandic population are published. Was a great show.

 

[Octopus Messiah]

@Octopus Messiah was taken to task.

Yes, that appears to be my way...
After the show Leila said she'd been listening to LAD and decided she wanted to come on because we'd guested so many "powerful women" and that her favorite segment was when neuroscientist Susan Greenfield snapped: "Are you going to listen or just carry on being witty?"
At the time I remember thinking, She thinks I'm witty!

 

[Katie-Ellen]

You did have your work cut out a little, and managed with apparent ease and much warmth. Delicious voice, she had, but there were a few edges there, for an interviewer to negotiate.

Powerful women. As opposed to feebly thick women - or men- with nothing to say? Well, you ain't gwine to have nodding donkeys on your show, unless we can lassoo someone lively and, erm, powerful to come and talk ...fracking.

Susan Greenfield was a cracking guest but that comment was hardly, for me, typical of the fascination of the interview.

 

[Nicole Wilson]

The coloring books are awesome. They keep my hands busy while my mind churns through problems, whether personal or writing. They are incredibly intricate. One page usually takes me 6-8 hours to finish.

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Gaaaagh! The Octopus gave me TWO pandas!

 

[Jason Byrne]

Gaaaagh! The Octopus gave me TWO pandas!

You know... when you take that out of context...

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Ah well. C'est L'itopia

 

[Marc Joan]

Ridiculously zoological. Hence third panda. I'll only remove it if she behaves herself.

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Gaaaagh! The Octopus gave me TWO pandas!

Hey!!! Gifting me more pandas, MARC JOAN.

The zoologicality was entirely coincidental

I will not behave

Have an Ida Spider.

Yeah.

 

[Marc Joan]

OK, panda removed.
Yikes -- they're mean up north. The spiders too.

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Heheh. She's from a children's story, Ida The Spider sitting in me drawer. Great to have an excuse to bring her out. (Someone swept her web away, tidying.)

It would be OK, any amount of pandas, if it didn't award one an unexplained negative rating, maybe public, and I don't think the Octopus is aware of the connotation, if you read what the pandas are responding to.

 

[Marc Joan]

Heheh. She's from a children's story, Ida The Spider sitting in me drawer. Great to have an excuse to bring her out. (Someone swept her web away, tidying.)

It would be OK, any amount of pandas, if it didn't award one an unexplained negative rating, maybe public, and I don't think the Octopus is aware of the connotation, if you read what the pandas are responding to.

Easily solved.
Oy!!@Octopus Messiah! Don't you know your profligate pandas are besmirching the reputation of the blameless KTLN Hazeldine? Consider removing them, before sallies forth with spiders and lawyers.

Can't seem to make @OctopusMessiah text do that thing where it goes red and alerts him, sorry

 

[Octopus Messiah]

I... I had no idea. I will commence exterminating pandas.
Sidenote: Does this mean China is dissing all those zoos? Or is this speciesism, plain and simple?
Hey @AgentPete : what's the deal with the negative pandas? As if probable extinction weren't bad enough...

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Quite so, we LIKE pandas.

It's a Chinese cultural thing. I saw an article somewhere.

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Easily solved.
Oy!!@Octopus Messiah! Don't you know your profligate pandas are besmirching the reputation of the blameless KTLN Hazeldine? Consider removing them, before sallies forth with spiders and lawyers.

Can't seem to make @OctopusMessiah text do that thing where it goes red and alerts him, sorry

No lawyers, I promise. Your own pandas were exterminated lately, in defence of indisputable blamelessness, and I shall beware of ridiculous zoologisms in future. Spiders well... I like them, so long as they are small enough.

Maybe a tumbleweed for minor infractions of taste or tact or style, but no black mark.

 

[AgentPete]

Hey @AgentPete : what's the deal with the negative pandas?

What pandas?

 

[Katie-Ellen]

They manifest as a negative rating, and people were happily awarding them in- what's the collective term for pandas? But seeing the minus points popping up, most have since been retired.

 

[AgentPete]

I see no pandas.

 

[Patricia D]

The threat of pandas has me paying more attention to capitalization, punctuation, and grammar. (Note the Oxford comma.) (Note the capital O.)

 

[Alistair Roberts]

Derek replaces Pandas? Hm...

 

[Nicole Wilson]

Does the Derek still give negative votes?